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Experts explain how trustees can affect state policy through advocacy
By Jennifer Childress
 It's January and the official start of the 81st REGULAR Session of the Texas Legislature. School finance, career and technology education, vouchers, accountability, dropout prevention and pre-kindergarten programs are just some of the big topics expected to be considered by the Legislature this year, among many more.
During the last session in 2007, the Texas Association of School Boards' Governmental Relations Division tracked some 2,200 education-related bills. Hundreds of bills already had been pre-filed prior to the start of this legislative session. Who ensures that the laws and regulations enacted this year positively impact public education in Texas? TASB would say it’s largely a responsibility of the school board members out there. Through its Governmental Relations Division, TASB is a chief lobbyist on behalf of public education in Texas, and it leans heavily on school district board members to be advocates for their districts.
“There is no better advocate than the school board member,” says Jackie Lain, associate executive director of the Governmental Relations Division. “We can provide statewide impact, but we can’t provide the local impact that board members can.”
Research shows that legislators listen to their constituents at home and that board members can be powerful advocates. There are more than 7,300 school board members statewide who can deliver the public education message to legislators.
Karen Ellis, a 10-year Richardson ISD board member and member of TASB’s Board of Directors, agrees that it’s the duty of all board members to serve as an advocate for their districts during this legislative session and throughout the year.“We are elected to represent the taxpayers of the community and their children,” Ellis says. “One of the best things we can do is to make sure the legislative process is enhancing our children’s education.”
Advocacy efforts should be targeted at state and federal lawmakers, as well as members of the State Board of Education, according to Lain. The key is establishing close relationships with legislators, as well as their staff members who work on education-related matters.
Several years ago, Richardson ISD took a personal approach with its local legislators. Each board member “adopted” a legislator with the goal of establishing a one-on-one relationship. TASB has embraced Richardson ISD’s approach to cultivating relationships with legislators through its “Adopt-a-Legislator” program. According to Ellis, the approach really works. “Get to know them as human beings,” she says. Invite your legislator to school district functions, budget meetings, pep rallies and sporting events, Ellis advises.
 Monthly breakfast or lunch meetings are also effective in forging relationships. During these meetings, board members can gauge their legislators current priorities, as well as educate their legislators on school district accomplishments, needs and challenges. Alief ISD trustee and TASB President-elect Sarah Winkler broadened the scope of this concept by establishing a monthly “Ladies Lunch Group.” It encompasses a number of area school district representatives, TASB board members and legislators.
Kathy Hanson, a six-year Tomball ISD board member, TASB board member and president of the Gulf Coast Area Association of School Boards, advises board members not to go into these meetings with lawmakers with only money on the mind.
“Everyone says they need more money,” Hanson says. “We may need more money, but we need to educate the legislators about why. Come armed with the facts. Give specific instances of how legislation has impacted your district, both good and bad.”
Establishing a close relationship with lawmakers also means establishing yourself as a resource. Make yourself available to lawmakers and their staff as a person who can provide information about the school district(s) in the area. Conduct research on how proposed state legislation could affect the education system at the local level and communicate those findings.
With a strong relationship in place, board members can feel confident contacting their representatives and meeting personally with them during the session to talk about pending education-related bills. And that communication goes both ways. Hanson says it is not uncommon for lawmakers to call their board members — sometimes even from the House floor — to ask for advice on a pending bill. Board members need to make themselves available, make sure their representatives have their contact information and be prepared to give their legislators the answers they need.
"[Legislators] don’t always have the answers; we need to serve as a resource for them,” Hanson says. “If we don’t have the answer, we can get the answers for them.”
Get ready to testify
Board members also should make themselves available to testify before government committees on education-related matters, according to Winkler. TASB’s Governmental Relations Division recently offered a boot camp to prepare board members to do just that.
TASB also has established the School Board Advocacy Network (SBAN) to increase school boards’ presence in the legislative process and to assist school board members in their advocacy efforts.
The goal of SBAN is to establish at least one legislative liaison for each school district during the legislative session. The liaison is the contact person who receives information, alerts and updates from TASB on legislation that is up for consideration. The liaison then takes the information back to the board to discuss the legislation’s potential impact on the school district.
 School districts, armed with information on pending legislation, can rally their communities in support or in opposition to legislation. Missy Bender, a third-year board member for Plano ISD, suggests establishing partnerships with other community organizations as a grassroots approach to advocacy. A strong grassroots effort, such as individual letter-writing campaigns, can be effective in mass numbers, according to Bender.
Winkler agrees. She talks to teacher groups and other civic organizations to garner their support and get them involved in the legislative process.
“Teachers have a lot of credibility; we try to get teacher groups and parent groups [to get involved] and try to be a united front,” Winkler says. “We talk to community groups because if it’s going to affect their children, then they’re going to need to know about it.”
According to Mark Miller, a Sealy ISD board member, advocating for your district requires knowledge of the legislative process, pending legislation and the key players who represent your district.
“The squeaky wheel gets the grease,” he says. “It’s imperative to be informed and, more important, to be visible and involved in advocacy.
“If you have knowledge of the process, knowledge of the product and knowledge of the players, you stand a better chance at being successful,” Miller continues. “Without one of those, you’re just going to be left on the sidelines.”
JENNIFER CHILDRESS is an attorney and the editor of Texas School Administrators’ Legal Digest.
Tools to help you stay informed
The Texas Association of School Boards has developed a number of easy-to-use reference tools and training materials to keep you informed throughout the legislative session. They can be found at www.gr.tasb.org. Here are a few examples:
Legislative Briefing Book – Concise briefs on the top education issues expected to be considered during the session.
Legislative reports – Weekly summaries of important education issues.
Legislative Update – Daily reports on legislative activity.
Bill summaries – Easy-to-read summaries of each education-related bill.
Guides and toolkits – Examples include the Adopt-a-Legislator Guide and Texas Legislative Witness Guide.
Online video – During session, video will be posted on Thursday evenings highlighting bills that board members need to address with their legislators.
Action alerts – TASB will post notices on its Web site of legislative activity that demands immediate attention. (This also can be delivered by mail, fax or email.)
Legislative hotline – A hotline only for board members and superintendents to contact their state legislators during the session.
Capitol Conference – Slated for Feb. 10 in Austin, this is a one-day conference with Capitol insiders and TASB Governmental Relations Division staff to help school leaders get to know key players, session issues and possible consequences of pending legislation.
Don't get left
ON THE SIDELINES
The Texas Association of School Boards’ Governmental Relations Division offers ideas and support for developing positive relationships with your legislators. Here’s how to get started:
Meet with your current state legislators.
The goal of the first meeting should be a social visit. You should get to know your state legislators on a personal basis and let them get to know you. Be sure you get the name of the staff person in their district and Capitol office(s) who will be handling education issues. A couple of months later, meet with them again to explain the impact on your district of a few of the laws the Legislature passed last session. Continue to meet with or email the legislator and his/her education staffer regularly throughout the interim to help them understand the impact of various laws on your district and the challenges your district faces.
Invite legislators to school functions and issue briefings by district personnel.
Legislators need to understand your district’s demographics and challenges. One of the most memorable ways to achieve this is through personal observation. Invite your legislators to a reception thanking them for their service, to a board meeting, to the opening of a new campus, to an awards ceremony or to other events that celebrate your school’s successes. Invite your legislators to an issue-focused briefing led by district personnel so they learn about the issues, understand their implications and get to meet district leaders.
Create an “Adopt-a-Legislator” program for the board.
Each school board member should “adopt” one legislator who represents the district. These may include state legislators, state board members or members of congress. The goal is for each board member to build a meaningful relationship with one lawmaker so that during crucial times, the lawmaker relies on that board member for feedback about proposed legislation or regulations.
Form a monthly lunch or coffee group with representatives from surrounding districts.
Form a group of trustees from neighboring school districts and others in the education community to meet monthly over lunch or coffee with legislators and/or other policymakers. The goal of the group is to build relationships and educate policymakers about issues facing local school districts.
Source: The Wave, Gulf Coast Area Association of School Boards newsletter, June 2008
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